Patellar Tendonitis 2018-01-22T14:51:58+00:00

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Patellar Tendonitis
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Patellar Tendonitis

What is Patellar Tendonitis?

As with all cases of tendonitis, patellar tendonitis is simply the inflammation, degeneration or rupture of the patellar ligament and the tissue that surround it, leading to pain and discomfort in the area just below the knee cap.

What causes it?

Patellar tendonitis is the condition that arises when the tendon and the tissues that surround it, become inflamed and irritated. This is usually due to overuse, especially from jumping activities. This is the reason patellar tendonitis is often called “jumper’s knee.”

When overuse is the cause of patellar tendonitis, patients are usually active participants of jumping-types of sports such as basketball. Patellar tendonitis may also be seen with sports such as running and football. Also, some patients develop patellar tendonitis after sustaining an acute injury to the tendon, and not allowing adequate healing. This type of traumatic patellar tendonitis is much less common than overuse syndromes.

How can we help?

Stretching the quadriceps, hamstring, and calf muscles prior to activity is very important once you do resume activities. Getting into a good stretching habit, even once the symptoms resolve, will help prevent a recurrence of the problem. Our Physiotherapists would be able to advise on certain stretching exercises.